Gay Purr-ee (A Little Golden Book)

UPA's kitty kat klassic, Gay Purr-ee (1962) features great Chuck Jones animation and the top notch voice talents of Judy Garland, Robert Goulet, Red Buttons, Paul Frees, and Mel Blanc. It's a simple cartoon tale of boy cat loves girl cat - boy cat loses girl cat - boy cat finds girl cat again, and thus all is well in Paris, France. And the Little Golden Book version featured in today's post is pretty sweet too! I hope everyone enjoys what is sure to be the first of many LGB posts here.

For more about the Gay Purr-ee (1962) animated film, click HERE!

Magic World

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee was once home to a mini-theme park known simply as Magic World. I've never been there, but somehow I've always had this brochure tucked inside of one of my Time/Life encyclopedias since grade school.



I'm not exactly sure what year we're looking at here (early 70's possibly?) but the focus during this magical era of Magic World seems to be hooked on martians and dinosaurs, just like every kid on Planet Earth at any given time in modern history. Perfect!



The fold-out brochure map (click to enlarge) is a tantalizing treat of everything the park contained at the time: a giant pirate ship, miniature golf, an underwater world aquarium, The Earth Auger, a "dragon" train that circles the entire park, plus various fictional and factual dangers along the railway: ghosts, abominable snowmen, giant snakes, invisible men, cavemen, "beautiful" man eating plants, volcanos, flying saucers, and of course it all ends with a souvenir gift shop. Whoever designed this park totally knew what kids liked! I, for one, would've been in heaven!



Magic World folded in 1994, but it lives on of course in many places around the world wide web. People who loved (and hated) it have shared their memories and even photos on various blogs and chat boards, so if you're keen on learning more just surf around a little.

It's also interesting to see how this park developed in the years after this brochure, with the addition of larger thrill rides, haunted houses, and fuzzier theme park mascots... it's a shame it had to close. Have you ever been to Magic World? Tell us about it! And see other fun Magic World brochures HERE and HERE!

Gene Foote: St. Louis Illustrator

A recent trip to a Maplewood antique mall produced this cool discovery: an original pencil/ink illustration by fellow St. Louisian Gene Foote. The seller info attached mentioned simply that Foote worked in the 50's and 60's as a commercial artist for the local newspapers (and Anheuser-Busch), and is now unfortunantly deceased. I fell in love with this illustration the second I saw it, and it was super affordable too so I couldn't resist:



(Pencil and ink on 9" x 12" Cold Pressed Illustration Board with handwritten pencil note on back: "Salesmen Never Miss An Appointment... Taking Care of Everything at Once.")

I can't seem to find any info online about Gene Foote, and I'd sure love to see more of his stuff. If anyone knows anything at all about Gene or this illustration (and how or where, or if it was even used), please let me know-- thank you!

The Outdoor Gourmet

Tomorrow is the first day of Summer, time for swimmin', sweatin', and mosquito bites-- yay! And for the amateur chef, this day means that it's finally time to fire up the outdoor grill. Now for BBQ Pros like us who have no problem standing in a 4-foot January snow drift just for a pork chop it's simply another day... yes, I'm talking to those who are deadly SERIOUS about their BBQ, because knowing ones way around a glowing briquette means having no need for Royal Chef's "Suggestions for Outdoor Grilling." So set the tongs and skewers aside for awhile and instead let's just flip through this wonderful 50 year old firebox pamphlet to enjoy the fun and festive illustrations that define the mouth watering spirit of cooking out.

(cover)

Stranded on a Desert Island

Everyone's played the Desert Island Game. Example: if you were stranding yourself on a desert island and could only take 10 things, what would be your "Top 10 Desert Island Albums?" or your "Top 10 Desert Island Books?" etc. So along the same lines, but with only ONE choice, who would you like to be stranded on a desert island with (and why?) It's just you and one other person... I know who I'd pick so let's hear yours, and in the meantime here's some funny gags to help you get in a more sunburned, wind-swept, sand gaulded, tropical mood.

Toyland 1960 (Part Two)

Time for the last half of the 1960 Toyland xmas catalog from Famous Barr (STL.) While the first half focused on toys for boys, the last 15 pages are a bit more geared for the girls, although there's still some stuff for the dudes (or maybe the tomboys?!) I have to admit that I'm insane for the TV character toys (love the vinyl Dennis the Menace and Ruff on page 18!) and especially the hilarious Hanna-Barbera mockeries (p.24!) They can shove that Casper on page 28 where the sun don't shine though... and man, how great is (J) Boxer on the same page--- he's already got the cutest black eye I ever saw!

I hope everyone enjoyed this amazing time capsule glimpse into 1960 xmas dreams!